Susan's Story

I have been ILL for many years. The doctor has been treating me for severe depression, fatigue, even gone as far as treating me for bi-polar. Then he did a CT scan for abdominal problems and found that I had a tumor in each of my adrenal glands.

I did some research and was very fortunate to have a friend of a friend whose mother has cushings. I gave him all of the information that I was compiling and wrote a history of all of the symptoms that I had that related to cushings. He was working toward proving that I did not have cushings and I couldn't believe that I did not have it. I have been on numerous anti-depressants over the last, at least, 5yrs. I told him that none of them have worked and I did not want to take any more. I wanted to see an endochrinologist. For 9 mos he was trying to diagnos me himself until finally I told him that I needed to see the endochronogist because he kept telling me that my cortisol level was normal and I reminded him how he told me my gallbladder was normal and the minute I went to the gastroentogist he told me it was not normal, my gallbladder had to come out, and when they took it out it was rotten. He then decided that this was all out of my hands, and referred me to a phsychiatrist and an endochrinologist.

After weeks of waiting for my appt. The endochronologist came into the room and said "I have been reading about you, your cortisol level is too high" That put a smile on my face and we proceeded with more testing. The outcome is that I have Cushings' syndrome and Diabetes Type II. I have been doing my blood sugar counts and they are extremely high and am now on Glucophage. The only problem is that this is all being done by my regular doctor and I am awaiting, through the HMO bureaucracy, to be sent back to the endochrinologist for treatment of the cushings and the diabetes.

In the meantime I will have a log of my blood sugar counts and maybe that will put us ahead of the game when I return to the specialist. Oh, and by the way, the Physchiatrist said he wanted to see me AFTER I went to the endochrinologist because he felt that I was not depressed and did not have ADD (which I had been put on Ridilin and Stretera). He felt that I did have a depressive and/or mood disorder, most likely caused by the adrenal tumors. Any comments or questions would be greatly appreciated.

I am all new to these diseases and to the message board world.........Thanks, Susan